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Transcript of COPTIC ORTHODOX PATRIARCHATE - Orthodox Hymns, Audio, Books, more

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EECOPTIC ORTHODOX PATRIARCHATE

The Heresy ofJEHOVAH’S WITNESSES

(A collection of articles published in‘El-Keraza’ English Magazine)

BYH.H. POPE SHENOUDA III

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Title : The Heresy of Jehovah’s WitnessesAuthor : H.H. Pope Shenouda IIIPress : Baramous . Monastery PressEdition : The First Edition - August 1993Revised :COEPA 1997

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H.H. Pope Shenouda III, 117th Pope ofAlexandria and the See of St. Mark

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CONTENTS

EE Introduction

EE The Heresy of Jehovah’s Witnesses

EE Their False Translation of the Bible

EE Some of their Heresies Regarding Christ

EE Is Jesus Christ the Archangel Michael ?

EE The Eternal Earthly Paradise

EE Jehovah’s Witnesses do not Believe inthe Immortality of the Soul

E E The Doctrine of Annihilation

EE Their Belief In Numerous Resurrections

EE The Holy Spirit, Hypostasis or Power ?

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INTRODUCTION

Jehovah’s Witnesses are not Christians. Although they believein the New Testament, it is their own incorrect translation thatis misconstrued to suit their beliefs. They do not callthemselves Christians, but ‘Jehovah’s Witnesses’ - ‘Jehovah’being a name of God used in the Old Testament.

Their doctrine regarding the Lord Jesus Christ is completelydifferent to the Christian doctrine; it is a mixture of the heresyof Arius, and other new heresies. They have even reached alevel much worse than that of Arius by far.

Many governments have expelled Jehovah’s Witnesses fromtheir countries because they sensed the danger which they{presented to the country’s general peace}. Therefore, {it can besaid that} they do not only propagate false religious beliefs, butthey also propagate dangerous political ideas.

As they say that the Church is a product of the devil, they alsosay that governments are a product of the devil, and encouragepeople not to enter the armed forces. They also considersaluting the flag as idolatry.

Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe in the immortality of thesoul and say that this is the teaching of the devil. They also saythat after a person dies, he lives happily in the ‘earthly paradise’,thus contradicting all the promises of the heavenly kingdom.

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We are currently in the process of preparing a detailed bookabout Jehovah’s Witnesses. {It will respond to their ideaswhich have now spread to many countries in the East andWest.} This booklet is merely a collection of articles that werepublished in the ‘El-Keraza’ English magazine, and which weconsidered publishing and distributing as an introduction to theupcoming book.

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THE HERESY OFJEHOVAH’S WITNESSES

Historical Background

Jehovah’s Witnesses are a group which appeared in thesecond half of the nineteenth century. Their founder,Charles Russell, was born in 1854 in Pennsylvania, U.S.A.

Russell was a Christian, but was influenced in his youth byArian and Seventh-Day Adventist teaching, as well as the ideasof some atheists. From amongst all this mixture, he formed hisdoctrine around the year 1872 and published it in the UnitedStates of America. He was able to collect a fortune worthapproximately five million dollars, which he used for industrialand commercial projects.

His wife sued him on the grounds of marital betrayal at theHamilton court which ruled in her favour, making him pay a fineand approving her divorce application. Some farmers alsocommenced proceedings against him on the grounds of fraudand swindling because he sold to them wheat which he called,‘miracle wheat’ at a very high price, claiming that it was fromthe holy land and that it was many times more abundant than thenormal harvest. {Of course non of this was true, the wheat wasnormal American wheat.}

In 1878 he renounced all Christian doctrine and in 1879 hepublished the ‘Watch Tower’ magazine, and thus this namedistinguished the publications and societies of Jehovah’s

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Witnesses. In the year 1884 he incorporated the “WatchTower Bible and Tract Society”.

Russell died in 1916 and was succeeded by Judge JosephRutherford.

Their False Prophecies

One of the most amazing doctrines preached by Jehovah’sWitnesses is that dealing with the Second Coming. Russellsaid that the world would end in 1914 with the SecondComing of Christ and that the Jews would be assembledtogether and govern the earth. However, the prophecy wasnot fulfilled and he died shortly afterwards in 1916.Jehovah’s Witnesses {then} changed their thoughts to thefollowing:

They said that the Lord Jesus Christ did not actually physicallycome in 1874, but did so spiritually, and that He commenced‘harvesting’ in 1878, gathering the ‘chosen’. In the year 1914the Father (Jehovah) enthroned Him and Judgement began.Hence, many wrote their wills and left their riches to Jehovah’sWitnesses in preparation for Judgement and the end of theworld.

As for Russell’s successor, Rutherford, he said thatAbraham, the father of the prophets, would come to theworld with a group of prophets in 1925 and he prepared apalace in California to receive them which cost $75 000.

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He dwelt with his wife in this palace awaiting their visitors, theprophets who, of course, have not come till now.

Jehovah’s Witnesses are not Christians

Although they believe in the New Testament, they are notChristians; they do not accept this title nor are they related toChrist. They are related to ‘Jehovah’, one of the names of Godin the Old Testament. They are against Christianity, they do notbelieve in it and attack it as they do every other religion withoutexception.

The copy of the New Testament which they have is theirown special translation, in which they delete and change asthey wish, and they do not accept any other translation.

Therefore, extensive discussions with them are not fruitful, forthere is nothing easier than quoting a verse to them and havingthem deny its existence, saying that it is not so in theirtranslation, or interpreting it in a roundabout way.

Jehovah’s Witnesses are a dangerous organisation

They are dangerous from a political point of view. They viewall governments as products of Satan. They do notacknowledge armies, regarding them also as a product of Satan;they refuse to carry out any military service. Some see them asa Zionist or Communist organisation.

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Their Publications

They have many books, pamphlets and tracts as well as amagazine called ‘Watch Tower’. Amongst their most famousbooks are, Let God be True, The Harp of God, You Can liveForever on Earth, Let Your Kingdom Come, The Truth ThatLeads to Eternal Life, The Bible: God’s Word or Man’s,Preparation, as well as many others.

Their Beliefs

We can say that they are an assembly of all the heresies, bothold and new.

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THEIR FALSE TRANSLATIONOF THE BIBLE

E E Jehovah’s Witnesses are not Christians. They are notattributed to Christ and they do not call themselvesChristians.

They are attributed to Jehovah, one of the names of God in theOld Testament. This is evidence that their doctrine has a Jewishinfluence, proving their belief in the Sabbath.

EE They believe that Christ is a god, but not God.

This is probably because they were influenced by certaindoctrines of Neo-Platonism or Gnosticism. This is the reasonthey alter John 1:1 and say that ‘the Word was a god’.

EE They have their own translation of the Holy Bible,

In which they alter the verses in order to suit their doctrines,such as John 1: 1. Acts 20: 28 reads “...the church of Godwhich He purchased with His own blood”, and this indicatesthat God took flesh, purchased the Church with His own blood,and thus, Christ is God. As for the translation used byJehovah’s Witnesses, it replaces the last phrase with ‘with theblood of His own’.

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EE The Jehovah’s Witnesses’ translation of the Bible iscalled the New World Translation of the Scriptures.

In this translation they alter the Holy Bible to suit theirteachings. We can take one such example:

Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that the spirit is everlasting;they do not even agree with the existence of the spirit and they{say}, as do Seventh Day Adventists, that when a person dies,that person neither senses, nor feels, nor knows; having neitherlife nor consciousness. Here, the words of our Lord to therepentant thief in Luke 23: 43, “Assuredly I say to you: ‘todayyou will be with Me in Paradise’” stand against this teaching.As long as he will be with the Christ in Paradise, then he has aliving spirit which can enjoy the association with the Lord JesusChrist.

In this case, what do they do? They merely change thebeginning of Christ’s words, making the translation read asfollows: “I say unto you today: ‘you shall be with me inParadise...’ When will the Lord be in Paradise? Perhaps afterthe general resurrection, according to their teachings.

One of the verses which indicates the Divine Incarnation clearlyis, “... great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested inthe flesh” (1 Timothy 3:16). Jehovah’s Witnesses translate thisverse as, ‘...great is the mystery of godliness which wasmanifest in flesh’, with the deletion of the word ‘God’, themeaning is incorrect.

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SOME OF THEIR HERESIESREGARDING CHRIST

E Despite their belief that the Lord Jesus Christ is a god, andthat He is a mighty god (Isaiah 9:6), they do not consider thatHe is the Almighty God, {hence implying that they believe inpolytheism.}

E Jehovah’s Witnesses say that the bowing of the Magi beforeour Lord Jesus Christ proves that they were led by Satan.

E They say that Christ was created and pre-existed in heaven.The purpose for His coming down from heaven is to be awitness to the kingdom of Jehovah. In this way they fall intothe heresy of Arius which was anathematised by the NiceneEcumenical Council in 325 A.D. Saint Athanasius was the herowho defended the Divinity of Christ there.

E They believe that the Lord Jesus Christ was assigned as a sonto God in Baptism, which was the beginning of his second birth.The Lord Jesus Christ became a spiritual son to God in it, and aking over the Kingdom of Jehovah. Actually, Baptism was oneof the occasions in which the Father witnessed to this Sonshipsaying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”(Matthew 3:17). John the Baptist also witnessed to this, saying,“And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God”(John 1:34).

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However, at the time of the Annunciation, prior to the Baptismand Birth, the angel said to the Virgin, “that (the) Holy Onewho is to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35).It is said in the Creed that the Son is, ‘born of the Father beforeall ages’. The Father witnessed to Him in the second Psalmsaying, “You are MY Son, Today I have begotten You” (Psalm2:7). Saint Paul quoted this phrase saying, “For to which of theangels did He ever say: You are My Son, Today I havebegotten You ... And again...But when He again brings thefirstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the angels of Godworship Him” (Hebrews 1:5-6).

E They say that the Lord Jesus Christ took the Divine Nature inBaptism. This, of course, is against Christ’s ability to create:“All things were made through Him” and “He was in the world,and the world was made through Him, and the world did notknow Him” (John 1); how could He then create the world if Heis not God?

E Jehovah’s Witnesses say that the Lord Jesus Christ does nothave an immortal soul, but that He gained immortality as areward for His success in examination and His loyalty to HisFather until death. They say that Christ was not immortal at thebeginning of His creation, thus meaning that eternal life isdependent upon eternal obedience. However, the time camewhen Jehovah (God) granted his son immortality, after a test ofobedience. This is impossible, because how can Christ bewithout an immortal soul, when He is the One who createdeverything, “All things were made through Him, and withoutHim nothing was made that was made” (John 1:3).

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E They also say that Christ did not rise in flesh, and did notascend to heaven in flesh, but that His crucified Body was takenout from the tomb and hidden by the angel with the penetratingpower of God and that He arose in spirit only. Naturally, this isagainst the saying of the Lord Jesus Christ to His disciples afterthe Resurrection, “Handle Me and see, for a spirit does nothave flesh and bones as you see I have ... And He took it (fish)and ate in their presence” (Luke 24:39-43). {Furthermore},He let Thomas touch the place of His wounds (John 20:27-29).

E The actual meaning of resurrection is that it is a resurrectionof the body because the spirit does not die; it is the body whichis resurrected after the spirit’s reunion with it. Therefore, if thebody does not rise, then there is no resurrection at all.

EThey {say} that Christ did not ascend to heaven with adisfigured body, because if He did then He would be less thanthe angels. We do not see Christ’s wounds as a disfigurementof His Body, but as a sign of His love for and Redemption ofus; we say with Isaiah the prophet, “... and by His stripes weare healed” (Isaiah 53:5).

The Book of Revelations states that He was seen in heaven inthe appearance of “a Lamb as though it had been slain”(Revelations 5:6), and that the Priests worshipped Him, saying“...You are worthy to take the scroll (the Bible) and to open itsseals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God byYour blood” (Revelations 5:9).

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IS JESUS CHRISTTHE ARCHANGEL MICHAEL ?

Jehovah’s Witnesses say that Jesus Christ is the ArchangelMichael, and this belief is expressed in their book, This MeansEverlasting Life, which is their commentary on Revelations12:13-19:5. The Harp of God is their commentary on Daniel12:1 and Salvation is their commentary on Revelations 12:7-9.

In Reply to this:

E Saint Paul the Apostle clarified that the Divinity ofChrist is much higher than that of angels.

In Hebrews 1:3-14, he presented proof of this in the followingpoints:

(1) The sitting of Christ on the right hand of God on high(Hebrews 1:3). This fact is also mentioned in Mark 16:19 andActs 7:56. The Father said to the Son, “Sit at My right hand,till I make Your enemies Your footstool” (Hebrews 1:13 andPsalm 110:1).

(2) The angels worshipping the Lord Jesus Christ inHebrews 1:6. This worshipping was also mentioned inPhilippians 2:10.

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(3) There is witness in the book of Psalms to Christ when itsays, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter ofrighteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom” (Psalm 45:6),whereas it is said about the angels, “Who makes His angelsspirits, His ministers a flame of fire” (Psalm 104:4).

(4) Christ is ‘the Creator’ in Psalm 102:25-27. This is alsomentioned in John 1:3, “All things were made through Him,and without Him nothing was made that was made” and “Hewas in the world, and the world was made through Him” (John1:10). As long as He created all things, then this includes theangels, amongst whom is the Archangel Michael.

(5) It was said about the Lord Jesus Christ, “You have putall things under His feet” (Psalm 8:6 and Hebrews 2:8),whereas, “He has not put the world....insubjection to angels”(Hebrews 2:5). However, the Lord Jesus Christ said aboutHimself, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and onearth” (Matthew 28:18). This authority, of course, includesauthority over angels.

We wish to add the following points to all of this:

(1) It was said about the Archangel Michael in his contentionwith the devil that he “dared not bring against him a revilingaccusation, but said, ‘The Lord rebukeYou!’” (Jude 9),whereas, the Lord Jesus Christ rebuked the devil many times(Mark 1:25, 27). He also cast out demons from many peopleand He gave His disciples authority to cast out demons(Matthew 10: 1, 8 and Luke 10:17).

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(2) It was said about the Lord Jesus Christ that, “(He) madeHimself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant”(Philippians 2:7) whereas the angel is a servant to God by hisnature (Revelations 19:10).

(3) It was said about the angels that they are sons of God (Job1:6 and 38:7). As for Christ, He is the Only Son (John 3:16 &18; 1:18 and 1 John 4:9) which means that He is the only Oneof His Nature and Essence.

(4) The Lord Jesus Christ said that He and the Father are one(John 10:30), a statement which neither angel nor archangelcould dare make.

(5) Neither the Archangel Michael nor any of the otherarchangels were described with the characteristics which areunique to God alone, such as His omnipresence, immortality,ability to create and reading thoughts.

(6) It was said about the Lord Jesus Christ that the angels are“His angels” (Matthew 13:41; 16:27 and 24:31). This meansthat they all conform to Him, including the Archangel Michael.

EE Another point which we can add is that Jehovah’sWitnesses mix between the Lord being an angel and Hisappearance in the form of an angel.

The Lord’s occasional appearance in the Old Testament in theform of an angel does not mean that He is an angel, for He alsoappeared in the form of a man, as in Genesis 32: 24-30... doesthis mean that God is a man?

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THE ETERNAL EARTHLY PARADISE

Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh Day Adventists believe thatthe reward of the righteous will be a paradise on earth.Regarding this they say, that:

• There is no inspired scripture which contains a promise thatthe redeemed will be given heaven as an eternal homeland.

• God created the earth for the people to dwell in, Satan tookthe earth by force and sin delayed the divine plan- until thisearth returns to the children of God.

• God’s promise to Abraham regarding the ownership of theearth shall be realised after He purifies it; Jerusalem will thenbecome the capital of this kingdom.

• People will live happily in this earthly paradise and Isaiah’sprophecy will be fulfilled in them, “They shall build housesand inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and eat theirfruit” (Isaiah 65..21).

In reply to this heresy we say:

(1) The promise of granting them the earth, houses and trees isagainst the eternal joy that the Holy Bible spoke about, “Eyehas not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of

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man the things which God has prepared for those who loveHim” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

(2) All of these physical pleasures such as eating, drinking,living in houses and the enjoyment of gardens are materialisticmatters, whereas the Bible teaches us that the Day ofResurrection will be with spiritual, heavenly bodies (1Corinthians 15:44, 49-50). Therefore, how can these heavenlybodies enjoy materialistic things?

(3) It is not possible that people will labour in eternity inbuilding houses and planting vines - and the prophecies of theOld Testament were not about an eternal earthly life. Likewise,God’s promise to Abraham was with respect to his children onearth, and a symbol of heaven.

(4) The Bible says that this earth will pass away, it will not bepurified and prepared for inhabitancy. The Lord Jesus Christsaid, “heaven and earth (will) pass away” (Matthew 5:18), thiswas also mentioned in the book of Revelation (21:1).

(5) The Parables that the Lord said about ‘the kingdom ofheaven’, as in Matthew 13, 24:31-47, 18:23, 20:1, 22:2 and25:1, are numerous. The verses about the kingdom of heavenare many and the most famous are:“...but whoever does andteaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom ofheaven” (Matthew 5:19), and “Not everyone who says to Me,‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he whodoes the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). Thepromise of the kingdom of heaven can be found in the sermonon the mount; Our Lord said, “Rejoice and be exceedinglyglad, for great is your reward in heaven” (Matthew 5:12, Luke

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6:23); “...but rather rejoice because your names are written inheaven” (Luke 10:20); and “...lay up for yourselves treasuresin heaven” (Matthew 6:20).

Saint Paul the Apostle is clear in saying, “For we know that ifour earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a buildingfrom God, a house not made with hands, eternal in theheavens” (2 Corinthians 5:1, 2). This verse is clear and doesnot agree with the phrase, “They shall build houses and inhabitthem.” Also read Colossians 1:5, Hebrews 12:23, Mark 12:25,2 Timothy 4:8 and Hebrews 11:16.

(6) Saint Paul the Apostle speaks about all the believers being‘caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air’, “And thuswe shall always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:17). TheLord says about His Second Coming that, “He will send Hisangels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gathertogether His elect from the four winds, from one end of heavento the other” (Matthew 24:31). He also says, “And if I go andprepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you toMyself, that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:3).

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JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES DO NOT BELIEVEIN THE

IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL

They say that man’s soul dies when his body dies, and that thereis no difference between the death of man and the death ofanimals. They believe that immortality is a specific characteristicof Jehovah alone.

The only person that will gain immortality is he who passes thetest during his life on earth. The soul is not immortal by itsnature, but immortality is granted to it by God if it succeeds inits spiritual wars.

Jehovah’s Witnesses say that Jesus Christ Himself does nothave an immortal soul, but gained immortality as a rewardfor His success in the test and for His faithfulness to theFather until death.

They say that Satan is the first teacher of immortality. Heproclaimed immortality when he said to Adam and Eve, “Youwill not surely die” (Genesis 3:4). He was a liar in saying this,and hence immortality is a lie from Satan.

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They proclaim that when man dies, he will have no sensation,feeling or comprehension, and will continue as such until theday of the resurrection.

That is why they do not believe in the intercession of thesaints who departed from our world, considering that theirspirits have died, not returning to a state of feeling orhearing.

Hence, they say that Christ Himself cannot be God, since He isnot immortal by His nature, but gained immortality after Hissuccess.

In like manner, they deny eternal suffering for the wicked;considering that if their spirits are not immortal, how can theylive eternally in suffering?

Jehovah’s Witnesses attempt to prove mortality of the soul bywhat was mentioned in the book of Ezekiel, “the soul who sinsshall die”. The explanation of this verse is that here, the word“soul” means ‘the whole person’, as it was said that eight soulswere saved in the ark (1 Peter 3:20), meaning eight persons.The king of Sodom also said to our father Abraham, “Give methe souls (persons), and take the goods for yourself” (Genesis14:21). Likewise, it was said in Acts 2:41, “Then those whogladly received his word were about three thousand souls”, thatis to say ‘persons’. Similarly, refer to: Acts 27:37, James 5:19,20, 1 Peter 1:9, Proverbs 25:25, Exodus 31:14, Leviticus 19:8,Genesis 12:5, and Genesis 3:7.

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In Reply to the Heresy of Jehovah’s Witnesses:

1. The creation of man in God’s likeness and image(Genesis 1:26,27).

God is immortal and hence man is also immortal.

2. Man is not like animals. Since God breathed the breath of life into Adam and he becamea living being (Genesis 2:7).

3. The Bible says that God is “the God of Abraham, Isaacand Jacob, the God of the living and not of the dead”(Luke 20: 37, 38).

Hence Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the like were and are stillalive and their spirits have not died through their {physical}death.

4. The book of Revelations mentions the souls that werekilled under the altar (Revelations 6:9-11), and how theyspoke to God, and God spoke to them.

Hence their souls were not dead.

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5. At the time of Saint Stephen’s martyrdom he said, “LordJesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59).

This, of course, does not mean that He would receive a spiritwhich does not feel or sense.

6. It is said in the book of Ecclesiastes about death, “Thenthe dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit willreturn to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7),

Its return to God means it is alive.

7. In the book of Job, it is said, “and after my skin isdestroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God”(job 19:26,27).

How can he see God if in his death his spirit cannot feel, see orcomprehend?

8. What can we then say about the miracles of raising thedead, which are many.

Like the story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16).

9. As for the Lord’s saying to the repentant thief,“Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me inParadise” (Luke 23:43), Jehovah’s Witnesses, {as was

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mentioned before}, have tried to alter the translation tobecome, ‘Assuredly I say to you today, you will be withMe in Paradise.’

It is clear that this misconstruction is not logical.

10. The expression, ‘the death of man’ means theseparation of his spirit from his body, and it does notmean the death of his spirit.

Jehovah’s Witnesses mix between the spirit and the body - See1 Thessalonians 5:23. The expression, “the soul that sins willdie” (Ezekiel 18:4), means that the person who sins will die theeternal death in “the lake of fire and brimstone” (Revelations20:10).

11. What about the spirit of Moses the prophet then, thatappeared on the Mount of Transfiguration with Christ?

Our Lord was speaking with Moses (Mark 9:4), who had died1400 years beforehand. Was Moses’ spirit dead, withoutfeeling or comprehension?

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THE DOCTRINE OF ANNIHILATION

Jehovah’s Witnesses believe in the annihilation of the wickedand not in their torture; even Satan will be annihilated and nottortured. Our father Adam has also died and will not rise again.

1. They do not believe in the immortality of the soul.

They {say} that the idea of the immortality of the soul wasinvented by Satan when he said to Adam and Eve, “You will notsurely die” (Genesis 3:4). It is as if the soul of man is like thatof an animal, being annihilated and terminated! Eternal life, intheir view, is a gift which God grants to the righteous, but it isnot of the nature of the soul.

2. They believe that the punishment of annihilation is for allthe wicked, even Satan himself.

In their doctrine Satan will be annihilated, he will cease to existand not be tortured. This, of course, is against the teaching ofthe Bible. Thus it was written in the book of Revelations, “Andthe devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire andbrimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And theywill be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation20:10). All the wicked will share in this fate, as the Lord said tothose on His left, “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the

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everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels”(Matthew 25:41).

3. The Bible did not say ‘annihilation’, but ‘torture’, dayand night, forever and ever.

Satan will share in the punishment of the fire and brimstone,along with his angels, the beast, the false prophet and all thewicked. Hence, the Lord {has clearly defined the fate of boththe wicked and the righteous;} “And these will go away intoeverlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life”(Matthew 25:46). He {spoke about} the fate of all those whoworship the beast and his image {saying}that they will be“...tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of theholy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke oftheir torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no restday or night” (Revelation 14:10-11).

The phrase, “they have no rest” does not agree withannihilation, and likewise, the phrase, “tribulation andanguish” as is found in Romans 2:8,9 (“tribulation and anguish,on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also ofthe Greek”). {Furthermore,} it was said about the SecondComing of the Lord that, “The Son of Man will send out Hisangels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things thatoffend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast theminto the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing ofteeth” (Matthew 13:41,42). Naturally, annihilation does notagree with wailing and gnashing of teeth. Likewise, the richman asked of our father Abraham to send to him Lazarus with a

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drop of water to cool his tongue, for he was tormented in thatflame (Luke 16:24).

4. The question of annihilation and the lack of tormentleads people to carelessness.

The lack of punishment will make them say, as some atheistphilosophers have said, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow wedie” (1 Corinthians 15:32), {{in order to satisfy themselveswith the desires of the world.}}

5. The idea of annihilation encourages those who commitsuicide.

He who commits suicide thinks that death will relieve him fromhis torment in the world, but we warn him of the torment afterdeath, since through suicide, he will meet death while being akiller of a soul. In this way, eternal punishment awaits him. Ifhowever, he was to be annihilated, then he truly would havebeen liberated from earthly torment, and without torment afterdeath.

6. Similarly, annihilation is against the resurrection and thejudgement of the wicked.

For what does it mean that God raises thousands of millions ofwicked people from death to say to them, “I have raised you tosay to you go and die again”?

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If Jehovah’s Witnesses, however, say that the dead will not rise,then we can place before them the Lord’s saying, “....all whoare in the graves will hear His voice and come forth - thosewho have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those whohave done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation” (John5:28,29). Likewise, what is the meaning of the judgementwhich is found in (Matthew 25:31-46), in which the Lord willseparate the righteous on His right and the wicked on His left?

7. In the same way, the punishment of annihilation makesall the wicked equal in reward.

Whereas it was said that the Lord will reward each according tohis works (Matthew 16:27), the works of the wicked differ inlevels and ugliness. For this reason the Lord said about the cityof Capernaum which rejected Him, “that it shall be moretolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgement thanfor you” (Matthew 11:24).

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THEIR BELIEF IN NUMEROUSRESURRECTIONS

Jehovah’s Witnesses believe in numerous resurrections, eachone being for a particular group of people, whereas the HolyBible teaches that there is only one resurrection for all people,the righteous and the wicked, together. It says, “...the hour iscoming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voiceand come forth - those who have done good, to the resurrectionof life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection ofcondemnation” (John 5:28-29). As for Jehovah’s Witnesses,they believe in the following resurrections:

1. The resurrection of the little flock.

This title was mentioned in Luke 12:32, and what is meant by itis those who will enter through the narrow gate, of which theLord said, “Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the waywhich leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew7:14).

Jehovah’s Witnesses, however, see that this resurrection is forthem, those of them who have died, as well as the living who,when they die, will complete the number, which is only 144000. They will rise with heavenly, or spiritual, bodies. Thisdescription is mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15:44 & 49, but this

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was said about everyone and not just about the 144 000;perhaps they took the number 144 000 from Revelations 7:4.The details of what was mentioned in this verse do not apply toJehovah’s Witnesses, neither does what was mentioned inRevelations 14:1-5.

They {say} that this resurrection started in the year 1914, andthat it is the first resurrection, but since the number is notcomplete, the resurrection will be completed with thoseJehovah’s Witnesses who are still alive.

It is impossible that the heavenly or spiritual resurrection is onlyfor one seventh of a million people from amongst the hundredsof millions of believers, this being repeated in many generations!

If we complete what was mentioned in Revelations 7, we readthese verses:“After these things I looked, and behold, a greatmultitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes,peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne (i.e. inheaven) and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, withpalm branches in their hands...”, “Therefore, they are beforethe throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple.And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them”(Revelations 7:9-15).

2. The second resurrection that Jehovah’s Witnessesbelieve in is the earthly resurrection.

They call it the resurrection of ‘the Other Sheep’. Thesepeople will remain in earthy bodies, living on earth, and will begoverned from heaven by the 144 000. These include the

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righteous people of the Old Testament, amongst them beingAbraham, Isaac, Jacob and David, whom they call, ‘the princesof earth.’

This resurrection also includes evil-doers, who will be given achance of one thousand years to repent.

A righteous government on earth will be established for thepeople of this earthly resurrection and they will marry and givebirth in the shadow of the rule of the kingdom.

3. There is a resurrection for a third group, this being forrighteous people who are not from amongst Jehovah’sWitnesses.

They will rise in the second resurrection in the second thousandyears.

Jehovah’s Witnesses also say that the day of judgement is onethousand years and that some people will not rise at all, such asAdam, who perished and was annihilated.

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THE HOLY SPIRIT,HYPOSTASIS OR POWER?

Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that the Holy Spirit is aHypostasis (a ‘Person’ of the Holy Trinity), but that He ismerely a power!

To this view, we say that the verses speaking about the HolySpirit in the Bible prove that He is a Hypostasis in the followingways:

• • He speaks.

For the Lord said to His saintly disciples “for it is not you whospeak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you”(Matthew 10:20). And Saint Paul the apostle says, “Today, ifyou will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews3:7-9). It is the Spirit who said, “Now, separate to MeBarnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them”(Acts 13:2). Therefore, He speaks and calls.

• • He teaches, reminds, guides, tells and convicts.

This is evident in the words of the Lord to the disciples aboutthe Holy Spirit, for He says, “He will teach you all things, and

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bring to your remembrance all the things that I said to you”(John 14:26), and “When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, Hewill guide you into all truth ... and He will tell you things tocome” (John 16:13), and “He will convict the world of sin”(John 16:8).

• • He leads the believers, whether they be congregation orindividuals.

Saint Paul the apostle says that, “For as many as are led theSpirit of God, these are sons of God” (Romans 8:14).

• • He also sets up shepherds.

Saint Paul the Apostle said to the bishops of Ephesus,“Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock amongwhich the Holy Spirit has made you overseers” (Acts 20:28);also see Acts 13:2.

• • It is also the Holy Spirit Who determines the way andmovement of ministers.

Saint Luke the Evangelist says of Saint Paul and hiscompanions, “Now when they had gone through Phrygia andthe region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit topreach the word in Asia. After they had come to Mysia, theytried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them”(Acts 16:6,7).

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The Holy Spirit helps and comforts the believers, makingintercession for them.

The Lord Jesus Christ says, “And I will pray the Father, andHe will give you another Helper, that He may abide with youforever” (John 14:16). Saint Paul says of Him, “the SpiritHimself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannotbe uttered” (Romans 8:26).

Since He speaks, teaches, reminds, guides, tells, convicts, leadsthe believers and sets up shepherds, determining theirmovement and helping and interceding, does it not follow thatHe is a Hypostasis?

As for the power, it is a consequence of His coming upon thebelievers, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirithas come upon you” (Acts 1:8). His coming upon believersalso gives zeal and wisdom and knowledge.